Which software are you buying?SACD or LP

One word: SACD

Paul

Paul, do you have a vinyl front end?

Metaphysics. This is a tough question, depends greatly on your equipment.

In my system, there is no doubt LP outperforms both CD and SACD. However, this should not come as any surprise, considering my analog equipment is valued at about thirty five times what my SACD format is.

The Miles Davis 45 RPM set at $150. reflects the fact it is out of print. I consider this a heavy investment, considering the original sales price a few months ago. The original Columbia version of "Kind of Blue" Still outperforms the SACD and CD versions, and the two audiophile releases in both 33 and 45, perform equal or above the original, depending on the pressing. Again, this is with my system, and comparing against my Sony S9000 ES SACD player. As SACD software and playback equipment continues to evolve, the results could certainly reverse.

As for worrying about your investment in vinyl, the rare items will continue to retain, and perhaps gain value for many years to come. I would be more concerned with investing too heavily in SACD software, particularly if you are duplicating titles. Sony is bound to offer lower prices in the near future to promote the format. When this happens, your (and mine) existing SACD software will certainly drop in value.

CD's will probably remain on their same course for a long time, there are so many titles and so many players, I would expect it to remain strong for at least for another ten years. After all, my brand new car came equipped with both CD and a cassette player. How long has it been since any of us considered the cassette the top format?

Hi Albert. Thanks for your detailed thoughts.

Right now, my front ends are $14k (SF T3/P3), $5k SCD-1 SACD Player, and $8K for Analog so performance in each category is pretty darn good and, as with your system, my LP sounds better than SACD and CD. I guess I'm not so worried about my investment in vinyl, just that it will be a PITA to get SACDs of all those recordings should the conveniences of SACD ever make me want to go all digital. However, I do realize that it would be MUCH more difficult the other way around.

What do you do about new music that is available in all three formats? Do you buy vinyl because that is what sounds best on your system TODAY?

FYI: I've been scooping up tons of vinyl lately and haven't bought CDs for months. However, I'm paying top dollar for most of the vinyl $25-100/lp because I have been buying quality recordings of the classics (jazz, rock, classical), many of which are OOP.

I have not performed any direct comparisons between vinyl and SACD, but since I purchased a SACD player in January, I've purchased 1 LP, 2 CDs and 18 SACDs. I've not done any comparisons because I don't have any duplicates. With that in mind, I suspect that the individual skill and artistry of the mastering engineer will outweigh any of the advantages one format holds over ther other.